Integrated illumination and optical surface topology detection system and methods of use thereof

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods are provided for optical topology detection and illumination. Embodiments provide an integrated system, and methods of operation thereof, where the integrated system includes an illumination system and an optical topology detection system, and where at least a portion of the spectral content of illumination light from the illumination system is within an optical detection bandwidth of the optical topology detection system, and where the operation of the optical topology detection system and the illumination system are interleaved to avoid crosstalk, such that the optical topology detection system detects the optical topology detection light when the illumination system is not emitting illumination light. The system may include, and control the operation of, an optical navigation system. The components of the system may be mounted to a rigid frame to maintain calibration.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.61/719,744, titled “INTEGRATED ILLUMINATION AND OPTICAL SURFACE TOPOLOGYDETECTION SYSTEM AND METHODS OF USE THEREOF” and filed on Oct. 29, 2012,the entire contents of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to optical surface topology detectionsystems. The present disclosure also relates to surgical illuminationand surgical navigation systems.

Optical illumination plays an important role during medical proceduresand is especially vital in the surgical theatre, but also important inspecialties such as dentistry, ophthalmology and gastroenterology.Lighting sources used in surgical environments typically need to providebright, uniform, and shadow-free illumination with little visibletemporal or spatial modulation. Light emitting diodes (LEDs) arebecoming the preferred choice of illumination in medicine due to theirhigh efficiency, long life times and relatively low cost.

Recently, 3D surface topology detection has been successfully applied toa broad range of medical applications including dentistry, orthopedics,surgery, and radiation therapy. This technique provides datasets withsub-millimeter accuracy, which can be used to position the patient for aprocedure, design surgical/dental implants, and/or for registration withother imaging modalities to provide subsurface information to thepractitioner.

Surface topology datasets can be generated in a number of ways, buttypical systems include laser range finders, photogrammetry systems, andstructured light imaging systems. For example, stereo structured lightimaging can be used to generate surface topology images. This methodinvolves active illumination of the field in order to easily identifycorrespondences (in images captured by a camera system) when compared tomore computationally intensive approaches (such as photogrammetry). Someof the most robust and accurate structured light techniques usesequences of binary patterns, often in conjunction with sinusoidalpatterns to further enhance accuracy. To obtain robust reconstructionsin the presence of ambient lighting, these methods typically project theinverse binary pattern in order to correctly label pixels.

With recent advances in Digital Light Processing (DLP) technology, theprojection of such patterns at very high speeds (1000's of times persecond) is now possible. In addition, advances in camera and computingtechnology have also enabled the synchronized acquisition of thesepatterns at very high speeds. These recent developments make itpractical to perform continuous or snapshot high-speed surface topologyimaging of anatomical targets during medical procedures.

Navigation systems are often employed in the surgical theatre, to aidthe surgeon performing the procedure by showing the relationship betweenthe patient's current anatomical state and some preoperative orintraoperative images obtained from an imaging modality such as computedtomography (CT). This relationship is visually displayed to the surgeonvia a computing and display unit, giving the surgeon subsurfaceinformation that they would typically lack without the navigationsystem.

Most navigation systems are based on optical triangulation of fiducialmarkers within the tracking unit's field of view. These reflectivefiducial markers can be found by illuminating the field of view with alight source, for example, in the near infrared, and viewing the fieldwith a stereo pair of near infrared cameras separated by a baseline,yielding two distinct views of the area (navigation module). Navigationsystems may also rely on active fiducial markers, which use nearinfrared LEDs to emit light that is directly captured by the stereo pairof near infrared cameras. By attaching a plurality of these fiducialmarkers to a known object, the 3D position and orientation of thatobject can be determined.

SUMMARY

Systems and methods are provided for optical topology detection andillumination. Embodiments provide an integrated system, and methods ofoperation thereof, where the integrated system includes an illuminationsystem and an optical topology detection system, and where at least aportion of the spectral content of illumination light from theillumination system is within an optical detection bandwidth of theoptical topology detection system, and where the operation of theoptical topology detection system and the illumination system areinterleaved to avoid crosstalk, such that the optical topology detectionsystem detects the optical topology detection light when theillumination system is not emitting illumination light. The system mayinclude, and control the operation of, an optical navigation system. Thecomponents of the system may be mounted to a rigid frame to maintaincalibration.

Accordingly, in one aspect, there is provided an integrated system foroptical topology detection and illumination, comprising:

an illumination system configured to illuminate a region of interestwith illumination light;

an optical topology detection system configured to project opticaltopology detection light onto the region of interest and to detectoptical topology detection light scattered or reflected from the regionof interest to detect the topology at the region of interest;

wherein at least a portion of the spectral content of the illuminationlight is within an optical detection bandwidth of said optical topologydetection system; and

one or more processors configured to:

-   -   provide one or more control signals for repeatedly triggering        interleaved operation of said optical topology detection system        and said illumination system; and    -   control the operation of said optical topology detection system        and said illumination system according to the one or more        control signals, such that the optical topology detection system        detects the optical topology detection light when said        illumination system is not emitting illumination light.

In another aspect, there is provided a computer implemented method ofsynchronizing and interleaving the operation of an optical topologydetection system and an illumination system for reducing opticalcrosstalk, wherein the illumination system provides illumination lightfor illuminating a region of interest, and wherein the optical topologydetection system is configured to project optical topology detectionlight onto the region of interest and to detect optical topologydetection light scattered or reflected from the region of interest todetect the topology at the region of interest, the method comprising:

providing one or more control signals for repeatedly triggeringinterleaved operation of the optical topology detection system and theillumination system; and

controlling the operation of the optical topology detection system andthe illumination system according to the one or more control signals,such that the optical topology detection system detects the opticaltopology detection light when the illumination system is not emittingillumination light;

wherein at least a portion of the spectral content of the illuminationlight is within an optical detection bandwidth of the optical topologydetection system.

A further understanding of the functional and advantageous aspects ofthe disclosure can be realized by reference to the following detaileddescription and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, withreference to the drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1( a) and 1(b) provide schematics diagram of an example compositesystem, including an illumination module and optical topology detectionmodule, where a) shows a link between the two systems, and b) shows themodules interfaced via a control and processing unit.

FIG. 2 is an optical block diagram showing an example implementation ofthe illumination module.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example implementation of theoptical topology detection module.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an example implementation of thecontrol and processing unit.

FIGS. 5( a)-(c) are illustrations showing schematics of structured lightsequence utilizing a) Gray codes, b) phase shifted sinusoids and c)combination of Gray codes and phase shifted sinusoids.

FIGS. 6( a)-(e) show a timing diagram showing an example implementationfor controlling the illumination and structured light system, includinga) master clock, b) projector on time, c) trigger signal, d) primarylighting on time, and e) primary camera(s) exposure on time.

FIG. 7 is an illustration showing a schematic of an ordering ofstructured light utilizing combined Gray code and phase shiftedsinusoids.

FIG. 8 a is a block diagram showing an example implementation of acomposite system showing shadow free illumination module, opticaltopology detection module and navigation module as well as links betweensystems.

FIG. 8 b is a block diagram showing another example implementation of acomposite system showing shadow free illumination module, opticaltopology detection module and navigation module, which are controlled bya control and processing unit.

FIG. 9 is an illustration of an example composite system provided in arigid housing (including lighting, structured light and navigation),where the view shows a plan view of the base portion of the housing.

FIG. 10 is an illustration of a cross section of an example compositesystem (lighting, structured light and triangulation), in which theplane shown is that of the structured light cameras.

FIG. 11 is an illustration of a cross section of an example compositesystem (lighting, structured light and triangulation), in which theplane shown is that of the triangulation cameras.

FIGS. 12( a)-(d) illustrate an example embodiment in which periodicmotion of the patient is monitored for controlling the acquisition ofoptical topology data, showing (a) an example time dependent signalcorresponding to the periodic motion, (b) a trigger signal, (c) the timeduration in which structured light is acquired, and (d) the derivativeof the signal show in (a).

FIGS. 13( a)-(c) illustrate an example implementation in which opticaltopology is only acquired when the periodic motion of the patient iswithin a prescribed threshold.

FIGS. 14( a)-(c) show a schematic of a variation of system shown inFIGS. 9-11, which the system includes additional cameras for both tooltracking and structured light imaging to increase the robustness of thesystem to line of sight obstructions.

FIG. 15( a)-(b) shows example embodiment multiple optical topologyprojectors are utilized to further increase robustness to line of sightobstructions.

FIGS. 16( a)-(e) show a timing diagram showing an example implementationfor controlling a composite system (lighting, structured light andtriangulation system), including a) master clock, b) projector on time,c) trigger signal, d) primary lighting on time, e) primary camera(s)exposure on time, and f) navigation module on time.

FIGS. 17( a)-(f) show an additional example embodiment of a timingdiagram, when embedded photodiode controls the triggering of the opticaltopology module and navigation module, which both operate in the NIRspectral regime, showing a) navigation module on time, b) photodioderesponse, c) master clock, d) projector on time, e) projector triggeroutput, f) primary lighting on time, and g) primary camera(s) exposureon time.

FIG. 18 is an illustration showing a schematic of an example integratedillumination and optical topology system employed in an operating roomenvironment.

FIG. 19 is a schematic of an example integrated illumination and opticaltopology system integrated into a surgical microscope.

FIG. 20 is a schematic of an example integrated illumination and opticaltopology system integrated into a surgical microscope for fluorescenceimaging.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various embodiments and aspects of the disclosure will be described withreference to details discussed below. The following description anddrawings are illustrative of the disclosure and are not to be construedas limiting the disclosure. Numerous specific details are described toprovide a thorough understanding of various embodiments of the presentdisclosure. However, in certain instances, well-known or conventionaldetails are not described in order to provide a concise discussion ofembodiments of the present disclosure. It should be understood that theorder of the steps of the methods disclosed herein is immaterial so longas the methods remain operable. Moreover, two or more steps may beconducted simultaneously or in a different order than recited hereinunless otherwise specified.

As used herein, the terms, “comprises” and “comprising” are to beconstrued as being inclusive and open ended, and not exclusive.Specifically, when used in the specification and claims, the terms,“comprises” and “comprising” and variations thereof mean the specifiedfeatures, steps or components are included. These terms are not to beinterpreted to exclude the presence of other features, steps orcomponents.

As used herein, the term “exemplary” means “serving as an example,instance, or illustration,” and should not be construed as preferred oradvantageous over other configurations disclosed herein.

As used herein, the terms “about” and “approximately”, when used inconjunction with ranges of dimensions of particles, compositions ofmixtures or other physical properties or characteristics, are meant tocover slight variations that may exist in the upper and lower limits ofthe ranges of dimensions so as to not exclude embodiments where onaverage most of the dimensions are satisfied but where statisticallydimensions may exist outside this region. It is not the intention toexclude embodiments such as these from the present disclosure.

As used herein, the term “optical” refers to electromagnetic radiationhaving a wavelength in the ultraviolet, visible, near-infrared, and/orinfrared regions of the electromagnetic spectrum.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, an illumination and opticalsurface topology (also herein referred to as “topology”) detectionsystem is provided that avoids mutually-induced optical interference orcross-talk through synchronized illumination and optical surfacetopology detection. FIG. 1( a) is a block diagram that illustrates themain components of an example system 100, including illumination module10 and optical topology detection module 20, which are interfaced orconnected as shown through connection 40. As shown in FIG. 1( b),illumination module 10 and optical topology detection module 20 may beinterfaced through external control and processing unit 30, which mayreside externally from optical topology detection module 20.

Illumination module 10 and optical topology detection module 20 aresupported such that optical topology detection field 85 of opticaltopology detection module 20 is positioned to illumination field 80 ofillumination module 10. This may be achieved, in one exampleimplementation, by rigidly supporting illumination module 10 and opticaltopology detection module 20, for example, on a common rigid frame,mechanical support, or housing. In particular, as shown in FIG. 1( a),illumination module 10 may be positioned such that the center of opticaltopology detection field 85 is approximately aligned with the center ofspecified illumination field 80. In surgical applications, the center ofoptical topology detection field 85 may be positioned relative to thecenter of illumination area 80, such that the center of the specifiedarea to be illuminated (anatomy, implant, tool etc.) is also the targetfor optical topology imaging.

In another example implementation, illumination module 10 need not befixed related to the optical topology detection module 20. For example,illumination module 10 may be, or may include, a portable illuminationdevice, such as a light placed on a helmet wearable by a surgeon. Insuch an embodiment, the illumination module need only be configured suchthat illumination field 80 is positionable to overlap with opticaltopology detection field 85. In such an embodiment, the interfacebetween illumination module 10 and optical detection module 20 (andoptional control and processing unit 30) may be a wireless link (asdescribed below).

In another example embodiment the optical topology detection system 20need not be fixed mechanically to the illumination module 10 but ratherthe relative position of the optical topology detection field 85 isaligned dynamically with respect to the illumination field 80 through amotorized system consisting of components such as motors, servo's,actuators, hydraulics for motion and a sensing system based on positiontracking sensors (RF, Optical, EM, or mechanical etc.).

According to various embodiments, both illumination module 10 andoptical topology module 20 are operated on a time-dependent basis, suchthat when illumination module 10 is emitting illumination light, opticaltopology module 20 is not emitting topology detection light, and viceversa. As described below, connection 40 and/or control and processingunit 30 is employed to synchronize the operation of illumination module10 and optical topology module 20. By synchronizing the operation ofillumination module 10 and optical topology module 20, optical topologyimage data is acquired in the absence of interfering light fromillumination module 10. Furthermore, in some embodiments, the intensityand/or duration of topology detection light emitted by optical topologydetection module 20 is controlled relative to the intensity and/orduration of illumination light emitted by illumination module, such thatthe ratio of the time averaged (i.e. as perceived by a human observer)illuminance of the topology detection light to the perceived timeaveraged illuminance of the illumination light is sufficiently smallthat the fluctuations in optical power associated with the topologydetection system are substantially imperceptible to a human observer.

An example embodiment of illumination module 10 is shown in FIG. 2. Inthe present example embodiment, illumination module 10 includesillumination light source 12, modulation circuit 14, and internal powersupply 16. In another embodiment, power may alternatively be provided toillumination module 10 from an external power source without the needfor an internal power supply.

In one embodiment, illumination light source 12 may include one or moreLEDs. An example of a suitable LED light source is one or more Cree XP-GNeutral White LEDs. The LEDs may be provided in an array, such as acircumferential or ring array. Illumination light source 12 may alsoinclude suitable focusing and/or beam conditioning optics (not shown)for producing an optical beam with a suitable beam shape and/ordivergence angle.

Example illumination module 10 also includes modulation circuit 14 fortemporally modulating the optical power emitted by illumination lightsource 12. This may be achieved, for example, by modulating electricalpower provided to illumination light source 12, which in turn causes theoptical power emitted by illumination light source 12 to be opticallymodulated. Alternatively, modulation circuit 14 may be employed todirectly modulate the optical power emitted by illumination light source12 (for example, by controlling an optical shutter, beam chopper, orother optical modulation device).

In one embodiment in which illumination light source 12 includes LEDs,modulation circuit 14 may include an LED controller circuit, such asLinear Technology LT3476EUHF high power current driver with pulse widthmodulation, for modulating the electrical current delivered to the LEDs.In other embodiments, modulated electrical current may be externallysupplied to illumination module 10 from an external control circuit,such as from control and processing unit 30 shown in FIG. 1( b).

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, modulation circuit 14 is connected to controland processing unit 30 (which may be integrated within optical topologydetection module 20, as shown in FIG. 1( a), or provided as or in aseparate device, as shown in FIG. 1( b). Connection 40 may be a physicalcable (e.g. for delivering an electrical or optical signal), or may be awireless connection, for example, as an optical transmission modality,or wireless transmission modality such as Wifi, Bluetooth, NFC orZigbee®. Connection 40 allows transmission of signals and/or databetween the system modules in order to facilitate temporalsynchronization of the modules, as described further below.

In one example implementation, connection 40 may be a unidirectionalconnection between control and processing unit 30 and modulation circuit14, for example, the delivery of a modulation signal that issynchronized with the acquisition of optical topology detection. Inanother example embodiment, the connection may be unidirectional betweenmodulation circuit 14 and control and processing unit 30, for example,for synchronizing the acquisition of optical topology detection datawith time-dependent illumination. In another example implementation, theconnection may be a bidirectional connection.

Optical topology detection module 20 may be any suitable system fordetecting, measuring, imaging, or otherwise determining surface topologyof one or more objects using optical radiation. Non-limiting examples ofsuitable optical devices include laser range finders, photogrammetrysystems, and structured light imaging systems, which project opticaltopology detection light onto a region of interest, and detect opticaltopology detection light that is scattered or reflected from the regionof interest, as described in PCT Application No. PCT/CA2011/050257,titled “SYSTEM AND METHODS FOR INTRAOPERATIVE GUIDANCE FEEDBACK”, whichis herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example embodiment in which optical topologysystem 20 is a structured light imaging system that includes lightsource 22, scanner or projector 24, one or more high-speed cameras 26,and control and processing unit 30. Structured light projector 24 may beany device suitable for projecting (for example, by imaging or scanning)light from light source 22 in a structured light pattern onto a surfaceof interest. An example of a suitable structured light projector is aDigital Light Processing (DLP) device. Light source 22 andscanner/projector 24 may be integrated in a single device, such as theDLP LightCrafter. Such a device can be modified to project white lightby replacing the blue LED with a white light LED and removing thedichroic mirror (for example, a Cree XM-L Neutral white LED).Alternatively, red, green and blue LED's may be run simultaneously orsequentially and in varying proportions to produce visibly white light(or other colors) with varying color temperatures to approximately matchthe illumination module output. Alternatively RGB laser's may besubstituted for LED's.

In one embodiment, camera 26 is a triggerable camera. It is to beunderstood that while one camera 26 is shown in the figure, alternativeembodiments may include two or more cameras. Camera 26 may be a color ormonochrome camera and may be based on CMOS or CCD technologies. Theimaging speed of the camera is important for situations where motion mayoccur that disrupts structured light acquisition. For example, insurgical applications a typical respiratory rate of a patient duringsurgery is P breaths per minute. For a structured light sequence using npatterns, the acquisition should occur in less than a fraction S of therespiratory period necessitating a camera with a minimum triggerableacquisition speed of approximately (n×P)/(60×S) fps. Thus, for arespiratory rate of P=20, a structured light sequence using n=24, and S=1/30 results in a minimum triggerable acquisition speed of 240 fps.

It is noted that during triggerable acquisition, the frame rate of thecamera may be decreased from the camera's untriggered mode. For otherapplications, such high imaging speeds may not be needed and this numbermay be reduced to a framerate which simply makes visible disruptionsnegligible.

In one example embodiment, camera 26 is a high-speed camera that iselectronically linked to a structured light projector 24 in order tosynchronize acquisition of the images with the projection. One exampleof a suitable camera is the Point Grey Flea3 camera which is amonochrome CMOS camera, capable of triggerable acquisition of greaterthan 300 Hz at 640×480 pixel resolution. The camera is connected to thecontrol and processing unit 30 via a USB 3.0 interface for high speeddata transfer.

FIG. 4 shows an example embodiment of control and processing unit 30,which may include computer hardware such as a processing unit 31 (e.g.one or more processors) and associated memory 31 a containing one ormore computer programs to control the operation of the system, whereprocessing unit 31 is in communication with a user interface unit 32 anddisplay 33. In one example, the control and processing unit 30 may be acomputing system such as a personal computer or other computing device,for example in the form of a computer workstation, incorporating ahardware processor and memory, where computations are performed by theprocessor in accordance with computer programs stored in the memory tocarry out the methods such as initiation of structured light imaging andreconstruction of acquired images into surface topology. For example,the processor can be a central processing unit or a graphical processingunit, or a combination of a central processing unit or graphicalprocessing unit. Data from these methods may be stored on a devicestorage unit 34.

The instructions to control illumination module 10 and/or the opticaltopology module 20 may be generated by processing unit 31.Alternatively, control and processing unit 30 may contain asynchronization unit 35, which may be used to output variousinstructions to the illumination module 10 and/or the optical topologymodule 20. For example, the synchronization unit 35 could take the formof one or more additional processors, which may be linked to processingunit 31 via serial communication or another connection method (wi-fi,usb, Ethernet, Bluetooth etc.). Alternatively, the synchronization unit35 may be an analogue or digital data acquisition (DAQ) card. Theinstructions can be transmitted to the illumination module 10 and/oroptical topology module 20 in the form of various digital and/or analogcommunication methods and protocols, such as, for example, electrical,optical, acoustical or other methods.

In one embodiment, control and processing unit 30 includes a generalpurpose computer or any other hardware equivalents. Thus, the system mayinclude at least one processor (CPU/microprocessor), a memory, which mayinclude random access memory (RAM), one or more storage devices (e.g., atape drive, a floppy drive, a hard disk drive or a compact disk drive),and/or read only memory (ROM), and various input/output devices (e.g., areceiver, a transmitter, a speaker, a display, an imaging sensor, suchas those used in a digital still camera or digital video camera, aclock, an output port, a user input device, such as a keyboard, akeypad, a mouse, a position tracked stylus, a position tracked probe, afoot switch, 6-degree input device based on the position tracking of ahandheld device, and the like, and/or a microphone for capturing speechcommands, etc.). The control and processing unit 30 may also beimplemented as one or more physical devices that are coupled to the CPUthrough a communication channel. For example, the control and processingunit 30 can be implemented using application specific integratedcircuits (ASIC). Alternatively, control and processing unit 30 can beimplemented as a combination of hardware and software, where thesoftware is loaded into the processor from the memory or over a networkconnection. In one embodiment, control and processing 30 (includingassociated data structures) of the present disclosure can be stored on acomputer readable medium, e.g., RAM memory, magnetic or optical drive ordiskette and the like.

While some embodiments have been described in the context of fullyfunctioning computers and computer systems, those skilled in the artwill appreciate that various embodiments are capable of beingdistributed as a program product in a variety of forms and are capableof being applied regardless of the particular type of machine orcomputer readable media used to actually effect the distribution.

Examples of computer-readable media include but are not limited torecordable and non-recordable type media such as volatile andnon-volatile memory devices, read only memory (ROM), random accessmemory (RAM), flash memory devices, floppy and other removable disks,magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media (e.g., Compact DiskRead-Only Memory (CD ROMS), Digital Versatile Disks, (DVDs), etc.),among others. The instructions can be embodied in digital and analogcommunication links for electrical, optical, acoustical or other formsof propagated signals, such as carrier waves, infrared signals, digitalsignals, etc. A machine readable medium can be used to store softwareand data which when executed by a data processing system causes thesystem to perform various methods. The executable software and data canbe stored in various places including for example ROM, volatile RAM,non-volatile memory and/or cache. Portions of this software and/or datacan be stored in any one of these storage devices. In general, a machinereadable medium includes any mechanism that provides (i.e., storesand/or transmits) information in a form accessible by a machine (e.g., acomputer, network device, personal digital assistant, manufacturingtool, any device with a set of one or more processors, etc.). As usedherein, the phrases “computer readable material” and “computer readablestorage medium” refers to all computer-readable media, except for atransitory propagating signal per se.

Some aspects of the present disclosure can be embodied, at least inpart, in software. That is, the techniques can be carried out in acomputer system or other data processing system in response to itsprocessor, such as a microprocessor, executing sequences of instructionscontained in a memory, such as ROM, volatile RAM, non-volatile memory,cache, magnetic and optical disks, or a remote storage device. Further,the instructions can be downloaded into a computing device over a datanetwork in a form of compiled and linked version. Alternatively, thelogic to perform the processes as discussed above could be implementedin additional computer and/or machine readable media, such as discretehardware components as large-scale integrated circuits (LSI's),application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC's), or firmware such aselectrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM's).

As shown in FIG. 1( b), control and processing unit 30 may resideexternal to illumination module 10 and optical topology detection module20. The projection of structured light patterns by structured lightprojector 24 and detection and processing of structured light images bycamera 26 is coordinated by control and processing unit 30.

In one example implementation, as shown in FIG. 5 a, structured lightscanning is performed using a Gray code pattern (SL_(i)) and theirinverses (SL_(i) ^(*)). While it is not essential to project the patternand its inverse to reconstruct the surfaces, projection of the inverseallows a more robust reconstruction in highly scattering environmentsand in the presence of ambient lighting. The sequence of images in FIG.5 a shows a full column encoded set of fringes for a 608 column DLPprojection system, with the largest fringe being 608 pixels wide andsmallest having a width of 2 pixels. An important benefit of Gray codescanning and reconstruction methods is the method's robustness to stepheight variations.

In another example implementation, structured light scanning can also beperformed by projection of a set of phase shifted sinusoidal patterns.FIG. 5 b shows a zoomed in view of such a set of phase patterns with aperiod of 8 pixels and shifts of 60 degrees between images. Theadvantage of phase shifting methods is the reconstruction of denserpoint clouds relative to Gray code methods (reconstruction yield pointclouds at the full camera resolution). However, phase shifting methodsrequire the use of computationally expensive phase unwrapping routineswhich may not be suitable for all applications.

In other example embodiments, Gray codes and phase shifting methods mayalso be combined to obtain robust reconstruction in presence of stepheight discontinuities while enabling dense reconstructions. FIG. 5 cshows an example of the set of images needed for such a system. Coarsereconstruction is performed by projection of the first 8 levels of theGray code sequence followed by 6 phase images to further refine thereconstruction and to obtain a dense reconstruction while avoiding thecomputationally intensive phase unwrapping technique (at the expense ofhaving to project the additional Gray code patterns).

Other example pattern codification schemes for structured light scanninginclude the use of binary patterns (opposed to Gray codes), n-ary codes,De Brujin sequences, M-arrays, gray levels and color encoding. In someembodiments, illumination module 10 emits light that has a spectralcomponent that would lie within the spectral bandwidth of lightdetection of optical topology detection module 20 (i.e. at least aportion of the spectral content of the illumination module overlaps withan optical detection bandwidth of the optical topology detectionmodule). In order to avoid a compromised signal to noise ratio duringoptical detection of the surface topology, the emission of light byillumination module 10 is synchronized with the operation of opticaltopology detection module 20, such that optical topology detectionmodule 20 only detects surface topology when illumination module 10 isnot emitting light. An example implementation of this synchronization inthe non-limiting case of structured light topology detection is shown inFIGS. 6( a) to 6(e), which provides timing diagrams that illustrate thesynchronized and temporally interleaved operation of the two modules.

FIG. 6( a) shows a master clock signal 205 that is employed torepeatedly trigger structured light projector 24 to project a patternduring time interval 210, as shown in FIG. 6( b), optionally in anordered sequence of patterns (as described above). Master clock signal205 can, for example, be generated from hardware (for example, via afunction generator such as Agilent 3320A or embedded microcontroller) orsoftware/firmware (for example, via computing module 30). As shown inFIGS. 6( c) and 6(e), trigger signal 215 is provided from computingmodule 30 to camera 26, which repeatedly signals camera 26 to acquirestructured light images during time interval 225.

The on-time of the illumination module is shown in FIG. 6( d). In thisparticular embodiment, the illumination module is triggered by thefalling edge of trigger signal 215. For example, the trigger signal 215can be used to generate a modulation/PWM signal which is sent to theillumination module (such as a LED driver). To achieve optimal SNRduring optical topology detection, the illumination lighting is turnedoff completely during the camera/projector on time 225. However, forpractical reasons binary modulation (on/off) of the illuminationmodulation may not be achievable.

For example, in medical applications, stringent electromagneticcompatibility requirements are enforced to prevent accidentalinterference of one piece of medical equipment with another. A reductionin EM emissions could be achieved by reducing the slew rate associatedwith modulation of LEDs employed for illumination. The reduction in slewrate can be achieved, for example, by (1) prolonging the amount of timeit takes to turn on and turn off of the LEDs, and/or (2) reducing orincreasing the maximum and/or minimum output intensity, respectively, ofthe illumination module. Implementation of either or both of thesemethods could lead to incomplete turn off of the LED illumination moduleduring optical topology acquisition.

It is to be understood that a wide variety of triggering andsynchronizations implementations may be employed according toembodiments of the present disclosure. For example, one or moretriggering signals may be generated by control and processing unit 30for synchronizing the interleaved operation of the optical topologydetection module 20 and illumination module 10.

In another example, illumination module 10 may repeatedly illuminate theregion of interest during time interval 220, and a control signal may begenerated by a processor associated with illumination module 10 andprovided to trigger the operation of optical topology detection module20 when illumination module 10 is not emitting the illumination light.

In another embodiment, optical topology detection module 20 mayrepeatedly project optical topology detection light onto the region ofinterest, and a control signals may be generated by a processorassociated with optical topology detection module 20 and provided totrigger the operation of illumination module 10 such that illuminationmodule 10 does not emit the illumination light during the operation ofoptical topology detection module 20.

In one embodiment, one or more control or trigger signals may begenerated directly by an optical source or projector associated withoptical topology module 20, such as structured light projector 24, andemployed to control camera 24 and/or illumination module 10. In anotherexample implementation, a control or trigger signal 215 may be providedto structured light projector 24, instead of master clock signal 205, inorder to control the duration of the projection of structured lightpatterns.

In another example implementation, the camera 26 may be triggered bymaster clock signal 205 to activate the optical topology system andperform the camera exposure during a prescribed time interval 225.Camera 26 may in turn output trigger signal 215 which in turn may beused trigger structured light projector 24 during time interval 210,and/or to control the timing of illumination module 10. As noted above,it is to be understood by those skilled in the art that other triggeringmethods and synchronization protocols may be employed in alternativeembodiments.

Trigger signal 215 (which need not be periodic) may also be provided tomodulation circuit 14 in order to turn off, or lower, the intensity of,illumination light emitted by illumination module 10. As describedabove, this synchronization of the systems is achieved throughconnection 40 between modulation circuit 14 of illumination module 10and control unit 30 (which may reside within, or external to, opticaltopology detection module 20).

In the example implementation shown in FIGS. 6( a)-(e) (and in relatedvariations described above), a single pattern is projected during theillumination off-time (i.e. during each time interval 210 betweenillumination cycles 220, with a different pattern SL_(i) per timeinterval). In principle, however, any number of patterns (e.g. two ormore patterns, or all of the patterns) may be projected and acquiredduring a given interval 210 between illumination cycles, given fastenough projector and camera systems. Thus it is to be understood that inother embodiments, a full sequence of structured light patterns may bedivided into sub-sequences of patterns, such that two or more patternsare projected (and acquired) during each time interval 210.

Accordingly, by synchronizing, and temporally interleaving the operationof the two systems, optical topology detection may be performed byoptical topology detection system 20 without cross-talk or interferencefrom illumination module 10. The time interval between successive cycles(i.e. the time duration between master clock pulses) may be sufficientlyshort as to render this invisible to an observer. For example, the timeinterval may be less than approximately 10 ms.

In some embodiments, the modulation frequency of the illumination moduleis chosen to render flickering effects invisible to an observer, suchthat the illumination light is perceived as being continuous in time byan observer. It is generally known that above approximately 60-100 Hz(depending on the observer and the modulation depth), human vision isunable to perceive flickering effects, relatively independent of theduty cycle and modulation depth (the range of light output between thehigh/on and low/off levels in a flickering light waveform). Accordingly,the frequency of modulation of the illumination light is selected to besufficiently high that the fluctuations in the light intensity would berendered invisible to an observer. For example, in some embodiments, thefrequency of modulation of the illumination light is greater thanapproximately 60 Hz. In other embodiments, the frequency of modulationof the illumination light is greater than approximately 100 Hz. In otherembodiments, the frequency of modulation of the illumination light isselected to be greater than 200 Hz, 500 Hz, or higher frequencies.

However, due to a stroboscopic phenomenon known as saccadic masking, avisual phenomenon caused by aliasing that occurs when continuous motionis represented by a series of short or instantaneous samples, highspatial frequency components of the projected patterns may stilltransiently visible to the human eye, even at projection rates exceeding1000 Hz. Accordingly, when using active projection (for example,structured light projection), patterns projected using visible light canproduce visual disruptions to an observer, due to such saccadic maskingeffects. In some embodiments, such stroboscopic effects may be reducedby reducing the modulation depth between high and low cycles. In otherinstances, these stroboscopic effects may be of secondary importance toflickering as these effects only become apparent when viewing quicklymoving objects within the illumination field.

In some embodiments, LEDs are employed for illumination in order toachieved very fast response times (typically <1 μs), thereby enablingtemporal modulation of intensity at very high speeds (Hz-MHz), which mayhelp reduce flickering and stroboscopic effects. In some embodiments,the illumination intensity is modulated at a frequency exceeding 1 kHz,while in other embodiments, the illumination intensity is modulated at afrequency exceeding 1 MHz.

In some embodiments, in which illumination module 10 and opticaltopology detection module 20 emit visible light (i.e. in which opticaltopology detection module is an active system), the duration and/orintensity and/or sequence of the emitted topology detection lightpatterns are controlled relative to the duration and/or intensity of theillumination light, in order to reduce visual disruptions, such that theratio of the time averaged (i.e. as perceived by a human observer)illuminance of the topology detection light to the perceived timeaveraged illuminance of the illumination light is sufficiently smallthat the fluctuations in optical power associated with the topologydetection system are substantially imperceptible to a human observer.This is achieved through the synchronization and control of the twomodules.

The time averaged illuminance, can be expressed according to thefollowing example equation:

E _(v) =∫₀ ^(T) E _(v)(t)dt

where T is chosen to be much larger than the time taken to cycle throughall the patterns in the sequence.

For example, structured light imaging can be performed by the projectionof the sequence of Gray coded images shown in FIG. 5( a). Whenprojecting this particular sequence of patterns at frame rates rangingbetween 100 and 240 fps, it was determined experimentally, that the timeaveraged illuminance ratio (averaged over a timescale much longer thanthe inverse of the maximum frequency perceivable by a human observer,for example, longer than 100 milliseconds) between the illuminationmodule 10 and optical topology detection module 20 should be on theorder of approximately 100:1, or greater, in order to adequately maskthe projected patterns and reduce visual disruptions.

In another realization of the system 100, structured light imaging isperformed with a sequence of phase patterns shown schematically in FIG.5( b). By projection of these sinusoidal fringes at frame rates betweenand 100 and 240 fps it was found experimentally that the time averagedilluminance ratio (averaged over a timescale much longer than theinverse of the maximum frequency perceivable by a human observer)between the illumination system 10 and the optical topology system 20required to mask the projected patterns was on the order ofapproximately 50:1 or greater.

In yet another realization of the system, structured light imaging isperformed using a sequence of Gray code and phase images shownschematically in 5(c). In this case it was experimentally found that therequired time averaged illuminance ratio (averaged over a timescale muchlonger than the inverse of the maximum frequency perceivable by a humanobserver) between the two modules was on the order of approximately200:1 or greater. However, by changing the order of the projectedpatterns from the sequence shown in FIG. 5 c to the sequence shown inFIG. 7, this ratio can be reduced to 100:1. This is beneficial as it iscrucial to maximize the photons acquired by camera 26 during spatiallight projection.

These example implementations illustrate that the particular orderingsof the pattern sequence can provide a further increase in the projectedintensity of topology detection light for a given lighting illuminationintensity, thus maximizing the camera acquisition SNR. This may beparticularly important in a situation where limits may be placed on thelighting illumination, such as in the case of surgical lighting whereillumination must typically be between 40000 and 160000 lux.

It is noted that while the above threshold values for the time averagedilluminance ratio (averaged over a timescale much longer than theinverse of the maximum frequency perceivable by a human observer)between the two modules have been specified for frame rates between 100and 240 fps. Rapid technological advances have led to increases in LEDintensity, DLP projection rates, camera acquisition rates and camerasensitivities will enable faster acquisition, while still maintaininghigh SNR using shorter exposures. These increases in imaging speed willultimately lead to a further reduction of threshold values necessary toachieve masking of the SL pattern sequences.

In the case of continuous projection rates approaching approximately10000 Hz, visual disturbances (both stroboscopic and flicker) due to SLpattern sequences would no longer be perceptible, even if theillumination module intensity were to go to zero. That is, regardless ofthe presence or absence of the illumination module, any visualdisturbance due to SL pattern sequences would be negligible. Thepreceding statement assumes that the length (N_(s)) of the patternsequence is less than approximately 100 frames. This implies changes inthe time averaged intensity during a single pattern sequence would havea frequency greater than 100 Hz (10000 Hz/N_(s)) and thus would not bevisible.

Furthermore, if one assumes a linear scaling for the threshold value ofthe time averaged illuminance ratio (averaged over a timescale muchlonger than the inverse of the maximum frequency perceivable by a humanobserver) for a particular pattern sequences, one can determine anexample generalized scaling expression (based on the example frequencyof 10,000 Hz noted above) for the particular pattern sequence needed toachieve masking, namely:

${T_{S}\left( f_{proj} \right)} = {{T_{S}\left( f_{m} \right)} - {\frac{T_{S}\left( f_{m} \right)}{10000 - f_{m}} \times \left( {f_{proj} - f_{m}} \right)}}$

where T_(S) is the threshold value for the particular pattern sequence,f_(proj) is the projection framerate and T_(S)(f_(m)) is the measuredthreshold value for the particular pattern sequence at a projectionfrequency of f_(m) Hz. In some embodiments, illumination module 10 isoperated during illumination time interval 220, and turned completelyoff during time interval 215 such that a substantial portion of the timeinterval between subsequent cycles is available for active opticaltopology detection. By selecting the relative time durations 210 and220, and the relative optical intensities of the two modules, opticaltopology patterns may be projected with sufficiently low intensityduring interval 210 such that the visual disturbances are substantiallyreduced or no longer detectable by an observer, but projected over asufficiently long time during the interval that cameras 26 may integratethe optical signal to capture images of the low intensity projectedpatterns with a sufficiently high signal to noise ratio for topologyreconstruction. In some embodiments, the collection of light by camera26 during this portion of the interval may be enhanced by having thecamera aperture completely open to increase the amount of light capturedduring the short integration time, and/or employing light gatheringoptical components such as lenses, mirrors and filters.

The image acquisition speed, which puts a limit on the integration timeof the camera, as well as the intensity of the projected light, and thecamera aperture, are adjustable parameters in the acquisition ofstructured light images. In one example, after fixing the imageacquisition speed (for example, for a given camera selection), themaximum allowable integration time may be employed, as this offersbetter signal to noise ratio when compared to a shorter integrationtime. For similar reasons, in some embodiments, the intensity of theprojected light could be set to the maximum supported by the projectorto achieve a high signal-to-noise ratio, which typically occurs atvalues much less than that from the surgical lights. The camera'saperture is also a variable parameter and in the case where cameraintegration time and projector intensity is maximized the aperture canbe chosen in such a way to maximize depth of field and signal-to-noiseratio, while not saturating the camera. Once these parameters are chosenthey are typically fixed, as changing the aperture alters thecalibration of the system.

This leaves the gain of the system as the most easily adjustableparameter in a calibrated system in a practical clinical setting. Thegain may be automatically set by acquiring an image from the workingsurgical field, and selecting a setting such that the fraction of camerapixels that are saturated are below a predefined threshold. For example,the gain setting may be modified so that less than 20% of the pixels aresaturated.

It is to be understood that optical topology detection module 20,whether active (emitting and detecting light) or passive (only detectinglight), need not employ emission or detection of light in the visiblespectrum. For example, in some embodiments, optical topology detectionmodule 20 emits and detects light in the infrared spectrum (for example,in the near-infrared (NIR) spectrum). Even though illumination module 10is generally employed for the illumination of a region with visiblelight, many visible light sources also emit significant amounts ofoptical radiation outside of the visible spectrum (such as in theinfrared and/or ultraviolet spectral ranges). Accordingly, the precedingembodiments may be employed when a visible optical illumination module10 is synchronized with a non-visible (e.g. infrared or ultraviolet)optical topology detection module 20, in order to reduce or avoidout-of-band crosstalk or interference.

Furthermore, it is to be understood that illumination module 10 is notlimited to providing illumination in the visible spectrum. For example,the system may be employed for machine vision applications that requireinfrared illumination. In such cases, an embodiment in whichillumination module 10 provided infrared illumination would be useful.

It is further noted that although in some cases, optical filtering maybe employed to eliminate or suppress out-of-band crosstalk, there may besituations or applications in which this is not possible or convenient.For example, in a surgical environment, multiple illumination sourcesmay be employed, and two or more of the multiple illumination sourcesmay be controlled according to the preceding embodiments. It may not bepractical or convenient to provide optical filtering to suppressout-of-band emission for each illumination source.

In other embodiments, other light emitting and/or detection systems ordevices may be synchronized and temporally modulated and controlled toavoid or suppress crosstalk or interference among systems. Non-limitingexamples are therapeutic modalities like surgical lasers, photodynamictherapy, laser ablation, low level laser therapy, infrared thermaltherapy systems. Non-limiting examples of diagnostic optical modalitiesdevices include fluorescence and/or luminescence imaging systems,scattering-based imaging systems such as optical coherence tomography,diffuse optical spectroscopy, Raman, coherent anti-Stokes Ramanspectroscopy, dynamic light scattering, laser scattering spectroscopy,diffuse optical tomography, photo-acoustic imaging,

It is to be understood that one or more other light emitting and/ordetection systems or devices may be controlled in place of the opticaltopology detection system, or, in addition to the optical detectionsystem. For example, in one embodiment in which an additional lightemitting device is controlled in addition to the optical topologydetection module, the operation of the additional light emitting devicemay be temporally multiplexed with the operation of optical illuminationmodule 10 and optical topology detection system 20, in a serial mannersimilar to that shown in FIG. 4, and as illustrated in the exampleprovided below. Alternatively, if the operation of the additional lightemitting device is compatible with either optical illumination module 10or with optical topology detection module 10, the additional lightemitting device may be operated simultaneously with the module withwhich its operation is compatible.

An example of an additional optical system that may be interfaced withboth optical illumination module 10 and with optical topology detectionsystem 20 is schematically shown in FIG. 8 a, in which the additionaloptical system is a surgical navigation (tracking) module 50. Surgicalnavigation module 50 performs referencing of the spatial position andorientation of objects. As shown below, all three modules may be linkedin such a way to enable synchronization of all three modules, to allowfor temporally controlled and gated illumination, imaging andreferencing to be performed.

In one embodiment, navigation module 50 may also be rigidly attached totopology detection module 20 in such a way such that the tracking volumeis fixed to a selected position relative to the optical topologydetection field in such a way such that the tracking volume is fixedrelative to the optical topology detection field, which enablessimultaneous positioning and calibrated operation of navigation module50 and optical topology detection module 20. Navigation module 50 and/orthe optical topology detection module 20 may also be rigidly attachedillumination module in such a way such that the tracking volume is fixedto a selected position relative to either the illumination field and theoptical topology detection field, which enables simultaneous positioningand calibrated operation of all three optical modules.

Optical surgical navigation systems typically employ passive or activeoptical triangulation. For example, surgical navigation systems commonlyemploy two stereotactic cameras to detect the positions of passiveoptical fiducial markers (e.g. reflective spheres) and/or active opticalfiducial markers (e.g. light emitting diodes (LEDs)). Such systems oftenemploy infrared-based passive and active triangulation, and largequantities of near infrared background, whether from large amount ofstray light and/or by having a large imaging volume, can reduce theaccuracy of triangulation.

In the example embodiment shown in FIG. 8 a illumination module 10 is asurgical lighting system, for example, providing substantiallyshadow-free illumination, and as described above. Optical topologydetection module 20, also described above, may be a structured lightimaging system based on a stereo calibrated camera pair and projectionunit, which may employ a combination of binary patterns and theirinverses. As shown in the FIG. 8 a, optical topology detection module 20is connected to illumination module 10 via connection 40 forsynchronized operation.

In addition to these two modules, navigation module 50 is alsosynchronized via connection 45 with optical topology detection module 20in order to minimize crosstalk and interference.

Alternatively, modules 10, 20 and 50 may be controlled by an externalcontrol and processing unit 30, for example, in the manner shown in FIG.8( b) where navigation module 50 tracks objects within imaging volume55.

FIGS. 9, 10 and 11 illustrate an example system implementation 300, inwhich each of the modules is held in a rigid housing 310. Housing 310includes a base portion (shown in plan view in FIG. 9) configured tosupport components of illumination module 10 and optical topologydetection module 20. In this example embodiment, the illumination moduleincludes one or more light sources, such as LED arrays 315. Lightsources 315 may be arranged symmetrically or asymmetrically about thebase portion to provide substantially shadow-free illumination of thespecified area. In one embodiment, one or more of the light sources 315are arranged in a peripheral region of base portion of the housing. Thepower supply and modulation circuitry, which were described previously,are not shown in the Figure (these components may be either stored inthe housing itself or in one or more separate modules).

As seen in FIG. 10, the base portion 370 of housing 310 may include atransparent window, to allow for illumination, projection andacquisition of images. Alternatively, apertures for each of theindividual optical subcomponents can be provided in base portion 370 toallow for optical transmission.

The example implementation shown in the FIG. 10 includes a structuredlight system, which is includes cameras 320 and a structured lightprojection system 330, which consists of an optical source and astructured light projector. Cameras 320 and projection system 330 areoriented such that they are focused at the center of the shadow-freeillumination field at specified distance, as shown, for example, in FIG.9. For example, projection system may be supported near a central regionof the base portion, and cameras 320 may be distributed between thecentral region and the peripheral region of the base portion. Cameras320 and projection system 330 are linked to a computer, or processingsystem using a connection interface such as wireless, or using aphysical connection such as USB, GigE, Firewire, and DVI.

Computing module 30, described above, is not shown in FIGS. 9 to 12, butit is to be understood that it may be located in close proximity to theintegrated system, such as within housing 310, or further from thehousing, such as in an external computing device.

Navigation module 50 may be a commercially available system such as theNDI Polaris Vicra, or a variant thereof. In some embodiments, navigationmodule 50 may be recessed and/or moved off-axis relative opticaltopology module 20 to accommodate a housing of navigation module 50. Inone example implementation, as further shown in the cross-sectionalviews provided in FIGS. 9 and 11, navigation module 50 may include acalibrated stereo pair of near-infrared navigation cameras 340 and nearinfrared LED arrays 350.

Navigation cameras 340 may be oriented such that they are able totriangulate the position of passive or active fiducial markers in aregion centered on the illumination field. In one embodiment, in orderto ensure that the operation of navigation module 50 does not interferethe operation of optical topology detection module 20, which may or maynot be based in the IR part of the spectrum, an IR-sensitive photodiodeor other suitable detector may be positioned close to the near-infraredLED array 350. For example, photodiode 360 may be employed to detectwhen navigation system 50 is emitting light, and to optionally provide asignal to computing module 30 for controlling and coordinating thetiming of the operation of optical topology detection module 20 to avoidinterference. In other embodiments, in which computing module isinterfaced with each of illumination module 10, optical topologydetection module 20, and navigation module 50, the direct control ofeach subsystem may be achieved without the need for photodiode 360.

In one embodiment, the initiation of acquisition by the optical topologydetection module 20 may be controlled, by the control and processingunit based on periodic motion of the patient that is monitored.

In one example implementation, this monitored periodic motion can beused (e.g. received and processed) by the control and processing unit totrigger the optical topology detection module 20 to begin acquisition ofa given structured light sequence (or subset of patterns) at aparticular time point during the motion cycle (such as a breathingcycle) in order to capture topology data that is synchronized in timewith the patient motion, such that acquisition of optical topologydetection light is performed during a portion of a cycle of motion ofthe patient, while maintaining the operation of the illumination systemduring the cycle of motion.

In some embodiments, the acquisition of the optical topology data can becontrolled based on the monitored patient motion such that opticaltopology data is only acquired when the speed of motion of the patient(e.g. of the relevant portion of the patient that is to be imaged) isbelow a pre-selected threshold. This enables the acquisition of opticaltopology data that is less affected by motion, with reduced or minimalartefacts.

Such an embodiment is illustrated in FIGS. 12( a)-(d) and 13(a)-(c).FIG. 12( a) shows an example measured periodic signal that is associatedwith the periodic motion of the patient. This signal may be employed totrigger the acquisition of optical topology data. For example, FIG. 12(b) shows a trigger signal 382 that is generated (e.g. by the control andprocessing unit) from the periodic signal shown in FIG. 12( a). Thetrigger signal may be employed to trigger the acquisition of a sequenceof structured light (optical topology) patterns.

In one example implementation, a sequence of structured light patternsmay be obtained at a pre-selected delay relative to the trigger signal,such that the acquisition occurs when the motion of the patient at apoint during the motion cycle when the motion is slow and unlikely toproduce artefacts. Such an example implementation is shown in FIG. 12(c), where the structured light sequence is acquired when the motion isnear a minimum. It is noted that during time duration 382, both opticaltopology acquisition and illumination are performed at high frequency(as shown in FIGS. 6( a)-(d)), while during the rest of each cycle,illumination is provided at high frequency in the absence of opticaltopology acquisition.

In another example implementation, the sequence of structured lightpatterns may be initiated at a point in time after the trigger signalwhen the speed of motion is below a pre-selected criterion. For example,the time durations 382 shown in 12(c) may be selected based on the speedbeing below a pre-selected threshold. FIG. 12( b) shows the derivative383 of the monitored signal, which is proportional to the speed ofmotion of the patient. An example speed threshold is shown at 384, andacquisition of optical topology (FIG. 12( c)) may be initiated when thespeed of motion falls below this threshold value after the triggersignal is received, corresponding to the regions shown in theacquisition regions (grey areas) 386.

Another example implementation is depicted in FIGS. 13( a)-(c) in which,the position value of the periodic signal 380 (associated with thepatient position) is employed to break up/continue acquisition ofstructured light patterns. Referring now to FIG. 13( a), a detailed viewof one cycle of the position signal 380 is shown, along with a positionthreshold 391 and acquisition region 392.

FIG. 13( b) shows the associated time dependence of the acquisition ofthe optical topology data. Optical topology data is acquired when theposition of the patient (e.g. as determined based on the signal 380)falls within a pre-selected position range, such as between a minimumvalue and threshold 391 For example, as shown in FIG. 13( b), opticaltopology data is only obtained for when the patient position is at nearthe minimum position, where the motion of the patient is slow. Opticaltopology data is not acquired when the position of the patient isoutside of the pre-selected position range, corresponding to region 394,where the missing optical topology acquisition events are shown indotted lines.

In the example embodiment shown in FIG. 13( b), the topology patternsmaking up a full sequence are grouped into six groups of patterns,identified in the Figure as S1-S6. The projection, and detection, ofgroups of topology patterns is halted, and delayed, when the signal 380lies outside of the pre-selected position. The projection, anddetection, of groups of topology patterns resumes once signal 380 fallswithin the pre-selected region. This can be seen for example, as thegroup of patterns S4 precedes region 394, which resumes with the groupof patterns S5 after region 394. As shown in FIG. 13( c), theillumination continues during time durations 392 and 394, such that theoperator does not perceive a noticeable change in illumination.

It is noted that if the time duration available for topology acquisitionwithin a given motion cycle is only a fraction of the time needed toacquire a full set of patterns, then two or more motion cycles may beemployed to acquire the full set of patterns.

In one example implementation, optical topology data may be captured byutilizing the tracking of the periodic motion of the patient to triggerthe initiation of the acquisition of an optical topology sequence one ormore points in time during each cycle of periodic motion of thepatient—in other words, the sequence may be obtained at one or morephases during each cycle of the periodic motion of the patient. Theresulting topology data, obtained over multiple cycles of periodicmotion of the patient, can then be used to display, and/orretrospectively reconstruct, the time evolution of the optical topologyinformation at any of the one or more phases.

In other embodiments, the motion of the patient may be monitored, asdescribed above, in order to detect the occurrence of sudden motionsusing the navigation/tracking system. Such sudden motions may result inthe corruption of optical topology data by motion artefacts. In responseto the detection of such a sudden motion, the controller may perform oneor more actions, such as, but not limited to, notifying the user oroperator (for example, of the need for re-acquisition), and/orautomatically controlling the system to perform re-acquisition.

In one example implementation, a sudden motion may be detected bycalculating the speed or velocity of the patient motion (as shownabove). For example, if the speed during acquisition exceeds apre-selected threshold, then the controller may perform one or moreactions. The threshold may be user defined or based on the intrinsicparameters of the imaging system. For example, if the optical topologysystem has an isotropic resolution of 300 um and that the time neededfor acquisition was 100 ms, then it would be preferable if all patternswere acquired during a time duration when the motion is less than 300 umin 100 ms, or had a speed of less than 3 mm/s.

In one embodiment, the motion of the patient may be monitored, forexample, based on input or feedback provided by the navigation module50. For example, one or more fiducial markers (such as markersassociated with a stereotactic/reference frame) that are attached orotherwise secured to the patient at or near a site of interest (e.g.fixed relative a relevant portion of the patient's body) may be trackedby the navigation module 50, such that periodic motion of the patient(e.g. due to breathing or heartbeat) can be monitored.

Other methods for strategically triggering the acquisition of theoptical topology system could include directly receiving periodicsignals from ECG system or ventilation unit.

Alternatively, the optical topology detection system itself could beused to track the periodic motion with sufficient temporal resolution.For example, a shorter set of structured light patterns than the fullset employed for surface reconstruction (e.g. the first 6 patterns of agray code sequence, de brujin sequence etc.) could be used to generate asparse set of points in a relatively shorter period of time (forexample, <60 ms). This sparse set could be used to continuously trackthe bulk motion of the tissue and to trigger when a high densitytopology is to be acquired.

In a further embodiment, the position of the one or more fiducialmarkers can be monitored in order to determine whether the site orregion of interest to be imaged by optical topology, (which may beassumed to be close to the location of the reference frame) is within ornear the optimal imaging volume associated with the optical topologydetection system. For example, if the site or region of interest is notwithin or near the imaging volume, then the acquisition by the opticaltopology system can be disabled, and the user may be notified that thesystem needs to be repositioned. Alternatively, the optical topologydetection system may be automatically repositioned based on feedbackfrom the navigation system.

FIGS. 14( a)-(c) shows system 400, which is a variation of system 300shown in FIGS. 9-11. System 400 includes one or more additional cameras440 for navigation (e.g. tool tracking) and one or more structured lightimaging cameras 420 to increase the robustness of the system to line ofsight obstructions. The figure shows an example implementation with twoadditional cameras of each type, but it will be understood that ingeneral, one or more additional cameras of each type may be provided. Inone embodiment, both navigation and structured light imaging can beperformed with any pair of suitable cameras and datasets merged forbetter coverage of the surgical field. Additionally, NIR illuminationfor tool tracking and shadow free illumination modules have been mergedinto composite lightning panels 415/450. For example, these light panelsmay contain a mixture of NIR and visible wavelength LED's mounted onto aPCB substrate but may be driven by separate LED drivers. Approximatefield of views for each of the modules is also shown for a typicalsurgical light working distance of approximately 100 cm. It will beunderstood that FIGS. 14( a)-(c) provide an example implementation ofsuch an embodiment, and that other configurations with other numbers ofcomponents and/or positioning of components may be employed in variousalternative implementations.

FIGS. 15( a) and (b) show another example embodiment where multipleoptical topology projectors 430 may be utilized in order to furtherdecrease the effects of line of sight obstruction. The multipleprojectors may operate on different spectral bands and/or timing schemesto avoid cross talk during acquisition in overlapping field of views. Insome embodiments, one or more projectors may be moved to enable opticaltopological detection from different views. The mechanism of movementmay be manual or motorized. Alternatively, the projector beam path maybe optically steered (manually, or automated).

Reconstructions from different projector views can be combined usingstereo camera calibration data in the case of stereo camera acquisition,for example, as described in Scharstein D., Szeliski R “High-AccuracyStereo Depth Maps Using Structured Light” IEEE Computer SocietyConference, Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition, I-195, 2003.Briefly, the method involves the following steps: 1) acquire images fromcalibrated stereo camera pair at each projector location, 2) rectifyimage pairs for each projector location, 3) decode phase and/or graycode images etc. at each projector location, 4) calculate disparity mapsfor each projector location, 5) project disparity maps into real spaceusing perspective transform for each projector location to generatepoint clouds, 6) merge point clouds from all projector locations. Thiscan be accomplished as all point clouds share a common origin andorientation such as one of the cameras in the calibrated stereo pair. Inthe case of single camera acquisitions the projector location, relativeto the camera, must be tracked or known a priori to merge thereconstructions.

It is important to note that when the structured light is accomplishedin the visible spectrum and there is no spectral overlap between thenavigation and optical topology detection module spectral bands,synchronization is not necessarily required, as these two systems canoperate independently without producing spectral cross-talk. However,when spectral bands of the structured light and navigation systemoverlap, such as the case where they both employ near-IR spectral bands,synchronization between the optical topology module 20 and navigationmodule 50 is beneficial to reduce cross-talk between modules.

Such an embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 16, where the navigationmodule on-time 230 is positioned in the timing diagram such that thisfalls within the period of the primary lighting on time (LED) 225.Therefore, synchronization will occur in a serial fashion such that theprojector illumination 215 occurs at a different time point than thenavigation module on time 230, where their respective near-IR spectralbands do not temporally overlap to stop the possibility of spectralcross-talk.

FIGS. 17( a)-(f) show an additional embodiment of a timing diagram whenan embedded photodiode (see photodiode 360 in FIG. 9) controls thetriggering of the optical topology module 20 and navigation module 50,which both operate in the NIR spectral regime. According to the presentembodiment, these modules operate at different times to reduce potentialcross-talk between the spectrally similar near-IR signals. As in theprevious embodiment, the projection system can be triggered using themaster clock, which subsequently projects the pattern and sends atrigger to turn off the primary lighting on time (LED) 220 and begin thecamera exposure 225. When a structured light acquisition is requestedthe system waits for the falling edge of the photodiode response 235before the master clock 210 begins outputting the main synchronizationsignal. Ideally, all of the patterns produced during the projectoron-time 215 are projected between two adjacent navigation systemexposures, which are typically very short (˜1 ms) leaving a large amountof dead time between exposures (˜50 ms).

However, in the case when a large amount of patterns are required andexceed the overall time between the navigation module on time 230, thepatterns can be broken up into packets of patterns to be displayed overmultiple adjacent navigation exposures (perhaps due to limitations inprojection and camera speeds). Therefore, in such an embodiment, thesequence is broken into smaller packets of patterns, which cantemporally fit between navigation system exposures.

For example, referring again to FIGS. 17( a)-(f), if the period of thenavigation module on-time 230 (i.e. the time duration between successiveactivations of the navigation module, not the on-time duration of agiven activation of the navigation module) is ˜33 ms, and 24 images areto be projected at a frame rate of 100 Hz, the overall required time forthe projection of 24 images would be ˜240 ms, which is longer than thenavigation module on time 230 and would cause problems with overallsystem trigger. Therefore, with the addition of a hardware or softwaredelay 205, the system may be configured to split the 24 images into 8packets of 3 images, where the 24 images would be displayed over 8complete periods of the navigation module on time 230 such that near-IRcross talk does not occur. Alternatively, a triggerable shutter couldalso be used to block the navigation module so that near-IR cross talkdoes not occur. It is to be understood that the preceding example is butone specific implementation of a method in which multiple structuredlight images (and illumination exposures) are interleaved betweennavigation exposures, and it is to be understood that there may be awide range of different implementations of this embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a schematic of the example integrated illumination andoptical topology system represented at 400. This system could be mountedvia an articulating arm 460, which could be physically attached to acart as shown. Control and processing unit 30 could be housed, forexample, within this cart, or alternatively, for example, in the casewhere the integrated illumination and optical topology system 400 ismounted on a wall or hung from the ceiling on a similar articulating arm460, control and processing unit 30 could be located within or outsideof the surgical theatre.

A suitable working distance and location of the field of view can bedetermined and/or maintained by the combination of surgeon(s) observingoptically emitted calibration patterns from the system 400. For example,the surgeon could identify the center and working distance of system 400through direct visual inspection of a pattern with sharp edges (e.g.checkerboard, crosshair, etc.), which may be projected in a particularcolor/wavelength. In this example, the calibration pattern is projectedwithout any of the aforementioned modulation schemes so that it isclearly visible to the surgeon. The illumination light source may alsobe turned off during this process in order to make the calibrationpattern more clearly visible.

For example, in one implementation, the projection of a calibrationpattern could be initiated when the operator or surgeon actuates amechanical switch or sensor (e.g. the operator grips a handle ordepresses a foot pedal). After the operator or surgeon stops actuatingthe switch or sensor, the system reverts to an “invisible mode” wherestructured light patterns are hidden according to the embodimentsdescribed above. In an alternative embodiment, a pattern for positioningmay be projected such that it is invisible to the operator or surgeon(according to the methods described herein) but, where the pattern maybe indirectly visualized on a display using the output from thesynchronized cameras.

Alternatively, the surgeon may directly visualize the cameras' outputimage/video feeds through the system's computer monitor to ensure thatthe images/videos acquired by the cameras are in focus. Generally, ifall components of the system are properly positioned and calibrated, theimages/videos from the cameras of the patient's anatomy, as well as anyprojected patterns made visible to the surgeon as described above,should be in focus. These procedures ensure that the system is at asuitable working distance from the target before acquiring structuredlight data. In an alternative embodiment, two or more visible lasers canbe attached to system 400 and aimed towards the surgical field so thatthe lasers intersect at the center of the suitable working volume. Thishelps the surgeons with orienting system 400 during surgery by aligningthe two laser dots until they overlap on surfaces of regions of interestin the surgical field.

Additional surgical lights 455 could be synchronized via triggeringschemes as seen in FIGS. 8, 16, and 17 such that the ambient light insurgical theatre can be controlled. These additional lights could be inthe form of, but not limited to, overhead surgical lights, ceilingmounted lights, wall lights, and headlamps.

The dashed arrows 465 on FIG. 18 represent the range of motion of theillumination modules and approximately 100 cm distance from theillumination and optical topology system from the patient. The solidarrows indicate which surgeons would be in the optimal position to movethe optical topology detection system 400 and surgical lights 455 tospecified locations, via an articulating arm 460. These potentialpositions lie within the semi-hemisphere represented by positioning arcs465.

In another embodiment, the system could detect the ambient lightcharacteristics (for example intensity, modulation frequency andspectrum) within the optical topology detection field 85 in order toadjust the illumination and modulation parameters of the opticaltopology detection module 20 to improve optical topology imaging.Accordingly, in one embodiment, the detected level of ambient light maybe provided as a feedback parameter to the control and processing unit,in order to actively control the intensity and/or duration of theillumination exposures, such as to achieve a pre-determined intensityand/or time duration ratio of the illumination light to the light fromthe optical detection system, or to ensure that the signal to noiseratio of detected light exceeds a given value.

For example, in one implementation, the illumination and modulationparameters may be adjusted to achieve a pre-determined intensity and/ortime duration ratio of the illumination light and the light from theoptical detection system and the ambient lighting level. The system maydisplay a warning (for example through user interface 32) to theoperator to adjust the ambient lighting conditions when the measuredambient light levels are beyond a specified value, or outside of apre-determined range. These ambient light characteristics could bedetected via optical topology cameras 26 or another photoactive devicesuch as a photodetector or spectrometer.

In some embodiments, in which the synchronization of the illuminationmodule and the topology detection module is performed in an open loopfashion via timing alone, a small time delay may be added after turningoff the illumination light prior to activating the optical topologydetection module, if there is a possibility of time-dependent decay ofthe illumination intensity after the illumination light source is turnedoff (e.g. due to luminescence).

In another embodiment, the system can be adapted to act as a surgicalmicroscope. FIG. 19 is an example schematic of such as a system.Articulating arm 460 is attached to system enclosure 480 via anattachment mechanism that may include a pivot joint such as a ball jointor universal joint, which may be locked in position. This allows thesystem to be positioned on top of a region of interest. Two additionalcameras 501, which may be of higher resolution than the navigationcameras 340, are used to provide a binocular, high resolution view ofthe surgical field. Typical magnifications for cameras 501 are 1× to 5×.

In another example embodiment, the surgical microscope may be adaptedfor fluorescence imaging. FIG. 20 shows an example schematic of suchsystem. Optical filters 510 are added to cameras 501. Additional lightsources 515, which act as the excitation light, are also added to thesystem. A non-limiting example is the fluorescence imaging offluorescein isothiocyanate. In this example, the light sources 515 wouldbe centered at ˜490 nm, and the filters centered at ˜510 nm. The lightsource may for example, be blue LEDs. The filters for example, may bebandpass filters. The light sources may be turned on in an on-demandfashion. Alternatively, the light sources may be modulated by themodulation scheme described in this patent, for example, performstructured light acquisition and fluorescence imaging in an interleavedfashion.

A live stream of the video cameras 501 may be displayed by variousmeans. One example is a head mounted display. Another example is an eyepiece 505 with two view ports, one for each eye, similar to standardsurgical microscopes. A third example is a 3D monitor. The eye piece 505may be attached directly on top of enclosure 480. In this case, thesurgeon can operate with their hands between the enclosure 480 and theregion being operated on, while looking down into the eyepiece.

This integrated system allows surface topology imaging, tool tracking,and illumination to be performed simultaneously. Navigation information,such as surgical tool location relative to preoperative images, obtainedusing the methods described in this invention, may be overlaid on top ofthe video stream from cameras 501. Visualization of tool trackinginformation can take the form of a semi-transparent visual layer that isoverlaid on top of the live stream from the video cameras.Alternatively, a smaller window can be present, for example, in thelower right corner of the video stream, that completely blocks the videostream in that portion of the visualization. This smaller window wouldshow navigation information such as where a tool is relative to a set ofpreoperative images. The size and position of this navigation window canvary depending on surgeon preference.

The systems and methods described above may be employed for a wide rangeof medical imaging applications. Additional medical applications of thesystem and methods described herein include colonoscopy, endoscopy andbronchoscopy procedures. For example, structured light imaging systemscan be integrated into tools such as endoscopes, bronchoscopes andexoscopes to provide comprehensive visualization of the topology ofluminal surfaces without disruption to the operator's visual field.Additionally, the modulation schemes described herein can also becombined with fluorescence based imaging for added functional contrast.

The embodiments described here can also be employed in other non-medicalapplications, in which surface topology acquisition is required in anilluminated environment. For example, digitization of actors' physicalfeatures in 3D for video games or other forms of media can make use ofstructured light imaging in real time. The system and methods describedcan be used to prevent the visual disturbance to the actors caused bythe projected light. It may also be possible to make use of theseembodiments in other 3D surface acquisition of the whole or parts of thehuman body, for example, in biometric or security applications tominimize the discomfort of the subjects being inspected.

The specific embodiments described above have been shown by way ofexample, and it should be understood that these embodiments may besusceptible to various modifications and alternative forms. It should befurther understood that the claims are not intended to be limited to theparticular forms disclosed, but rather to cover all modifications,equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope ofthis disclosure.

1. An integrated system for optical topology detection and illumination,comprising: an illumination system configured to illuminate a region ofinterest with illumination light; an optical topology detection systemconfigured to project optical topology detection light onto the regionof interest and to detect optical topology detection light scattered orreflected from the region of interest to detect the topology at theregion of interest; wherein at least a portion of the spectral contentof the illumination light is within an optical detection bandwidth ofsaid optical topology detection system; and one or more processorsconfigured to: provide one or more control signals for repeatedlytriggering interleaved operation of said optical topology detectionsystem and said illumination system; and control the operation of saidoptical topology detection system and said illumination system accordingto the one or more control signals, such that the optical topologydetection system detects the optical topology detection light when saidillumination system is not emitting illumination light.
 2. Theintegrated system according to claim 1 wherein said optical topologydetection system is a structured light projection device, and whereinsaid structured light projection device is configured to project anordered series of patterns for topology detection, and wherein onepattern from the ordered series of patterns is projected during eachtime interval between successive illumination cycles.
 3. The integratedsystem according to claim 1 wherein said optical topology detectionsystem is a structured light projection device, and wherein saidstructured light projection device is configured to project an orderedseries of patterns for topology detection, and wherein two or morepatterns of the ordered series of patterns are projected during eachtime interval between successive illumination cycles.
 4. The integratedsystem according to claim 1 wherein said optical topology detectionsystem is a structured light projection device, and wherein saidstructured light projection device is configured to project an orderedseries of patterns for topology detection, and wherein two or morepatterns are projected during the time between successive illuminationcycles.
 5. The integrated system according to claim 1 wherein saidoptical topology detection system is a structured light projectiondevice, and wherein said structured light projection device isconfigured to project an ordered series of patterns for topologydetection, and wherein all of the patterns are projected during the timebetween successive illumination cycles.
 6. The integrated systemaccording to claim 1 wherein said optical topology detection system andsaid illumination system emit light in the visible spectrum, and whereinsaid one or more processors are configured to control said illuminationsystem and said optical topology detection system such that theillumination light and the optical topology detection light areinterleaved at a sufficiently high frequency that the illumination lightis perceived as being continuous in time by an observer.
 7. Theintegrated system according to claim 6 wherein said sufficiently highfrequency is greater than approximately 60 Hz.
 8. The integrated systemaccording to claim 6 wherein the duration of the optical topologydetection light is controlled relative to the duration of theillumination light in order to reduce visual disruptions perceived bythe observer.
 9. The integrated system according to claim 6 wherein theoptical topology detection system is a structured light device, andwherein the sequence of light patterns is selected to reduce visualdisruptions perceived by the observer.
 10. The integrated systemaccording to claim 9 wherein the intensity of projected light patternsis controlled relative to the intensity of the illumination light inorder to reduce visual disruptions perceived by the observer.
 11. Theintegrated system according to claim 1 wherein said optical topologydetection system is a structured light device, and wherein the opticaltopology detection light is projected as a series of Gray code images.12. The integrated system according to claim 1 wherein said opticaltopology detection system is a structured light device, and wherein theoptical topology detection light is projected as a series of phaseimages.
 13. The integrated system according to claim 1 wherein saidoptical topology detection system is a structured light device, andwherein the optical topology detection light is projected as a seriesimages comprising Gray code images and phase images.
 14. The integratedsystem according to claim 1 further comprising: a rigid housing adaptedto rigidly support said illumination system and said optical topologydetection system.
 15. The integrated system according to claim 14wherein said rigid housing includes a rigid body having a base portion,said base portion having a central region and a peripheral region, andwherein said illumination system includes one or more light sourcessupported at said base portion and configured to emit the illuminationlight.
 16. The integrated system according to claim 15 wherein said oneor more of said light sources are distributed about said peripheralregion of said base portion.
 17. The integrated system according toclaim 15 wherein said light sources are light emitting diodes.
 18. Theintegrated system according to claim 15 wherein said optical topologydetection system is a structured light projection device, and whereinsaid structured light projection device comprises: a structured lightprojector for projecting a structured light pattern onto the region ofinterest; and one or more cameras for imaging the structured lightpattern projected onto the region of interest.
 19. The integrated systemaccording to claim 18 wherein said structured light projector supportedat said base portion and configured to project the structured lightpattern, and wherein said structured light projector is provided nearsaid central region of said base portion.
 20. The integrated systemaccording to claim 18 wherein said one or more cameras are supported atsaid base portion and configured to image the structured light pattern.21. The integrated system according to claim 20 wherein said one or morecameras are distributed between said central region and said peripheralregion of said base portion.
 22. The integrated system according toclaim 14 further comprising an optical navigation system supported bysaid rigid housing.
 23. The integrated system according to claim 22wherein least a portion of the spectral content of light emitted by saidoptical navigation system is within an optical detection bandwidth ofsaid optical topology detection system, and wherein said one or moreprocessors are further configured to: provide one or more controlsignals for repeatedly triggering interleaved operation of said opticalnavigation system with said optical topology detection system and saidillumination system; and control the operation of said opticalnavigation system according to the one or more control signals, suchthat the optical topology detection system detects the optical topologydetection light when said optical navigation system is not emittingillumination light.
 24. The integrated system according to claim 14wherein said one or more processors are provided within said rigidhousing.
 25. The integrated system according to claim 14 wherein saidrigid housing is supported on an articulating arm for varying a positionand/or angle of said rigid housing.
 26. The integrated system accordingto claim 1 wherein the one or more processors are further configured to:obtain a signal associated with periodic motion of a patient beingimaged by said optical topology detection system; and control theacquisition of the optical topology detection light based on theperiodic signal, such that acquisition of optical topology detectionlight is performed during a portion of a cycle of motion of the patient,while maintaining the operation of said illumination system during thecycle of motion.
 27. The integrated system according to claim 26 whereinthe one or more processors are further configured to: generate a triggersignal based on the periodic signal; and control the acquisition of theoptical topology detection light based on the trigger signal.
 28. Theintegrated system according to claim 27 wherein said optical topologydetection system is a structured light projection system, and whereinthe optical topology detection light comprises a sequence of structuredlight patterns, and wherein said structured light projection system iscontrolled such that the sequence of structured light patterns areacquired at a pre-selected delay relative to the trigger signal duringeach cycle of motion of the patient.
 29. The integrated system accordingto claim 28 wherein the pre-selected delay is selected such that thesequence of patterns is acquired when patient is approximately at rest.30. The integrated system according to claim 27 wherein said opticaltopology detection system is a structured light projection system, andwherein the optical topology detection light comprises a sequence ofstructured light patterns, and wherein said structured light projectionsystem is controlled such that a sequence of structured light patternsis acquired during each cycle of motion after receiving the triggersignal when a rate of change of the signal falls below a pre-selectedthreshold.
 31. The integrated system according to claim 26 wherein saidoptical topology detection system is a structured light projectionsystem, and wherein the optical topology detection light comprises asequence of structured light patterns, and wherein said structured lightprojection system is controlled such that a sequence of structured lightpatterns is acquired during each cycle of motion when the signal lieswithin a pre-selected range.
 32. The integrated system according toclaim 26 wherein said optical topology detection system is controlledsuch that the optical topology detection light is acquired during eachcycle of motion when the signal lies within a pre-selected range.
 33. Acomputer implemented method of synchronizing and interleaving theoperation of an optical topology detection system and an illuminationsystem for reducing optical crosstalk, wherein the illumination systemprovides illumination light for illuminating a region of interest, andwherein the optical topology detection system is configured to projectoptical topology detection light onto the region of interest and todetect optical topology detection light scattered or reflected from theregion of interest to detect the topology at the region of interest, themethod comprising: providing one or more control signals for repeatedlytriggering interleaved operation of the optical topology detectionsystem and the illumination system; and controlling the operation of theoptical topology detection system and the illumination system accordingto the one or more control signals, such that the optical topologydetection system detects the optical topology detection light when theillumination system is not emitting illumination light; wherein at leasta portion of the spectral content of the illumination light is within anoptical detection bandwidth of the optical topology detection system.34. The method according to claim 33 wherein the illumination system andthe optical topology detection system are interfaced with a processingand control unit, and wherein the processing and control unit isconfigured to provide control signals to the illumination system and theoptical topology detection system for synchronizing and interleaving theoperation of the illumination system and the optical topology detectionsystem.
 35. The method according to claim 33 wherein the illuminationsystem is configured to repeatedly illuminate the region of interest,and wherein the illumination system is electrically interfaced with theoptical topology detection system, and wherein at least one of thecontrol signals is generated by a processor associated with theillumination system, such that the at least one control signal isprovided from the illumination system to trigger the operation of theoptical topology detection system when the illumination system is notemitting the illumination light.
 36. The method according to claim 33wherein the optical topology detection system is configured torepeatedly project the optical topology detection light onto the regionof interest, and wherein the illumination system is electricallyinterfaced with the optical topology detection system, and wherein atleast one of the control signals is generated by a processor associatedwith the optical topology detection system, such that the at least onecontrol signal is provided from the optical topology detection system totrigger the operation of the illumination system such that theillumination system does not emit the illumination light during theoperation of the optical topology detection system.
 37. The methodaccording to claim 36 wherein the processor is associated with anoptical projection device of the optical topology detection system, andwherein at least one control signal is generated by the processor andprovided to one or more cameras associated with the optical topologydetection system for triggering an exposure time of the one or morecameras.
 38. The method according to claim 33 wherein one of the controlsignals is a master clock.
 39. The method according to claim 33 whereinthe optical topology detection system is a structured light projectiondevice.
 40. The method according to claim 39 wherein the structuredlight projection device is configured to project an ordered series ofpatterns for topology detection, and wherein one pattern from the seriesof patterns is projected during each time interval between successiveillumination cycles.
 41. The method according to claim 39 wherein thestructured light projection device is configured to project an orderedseries of patterns for topology detection, and wherein two or morepatterns are projected during the time between successive illuminationcycles.
 42. The method according to claim 39 wherein the structuredlight projection device is configured to project an ordered series ofpatterns for topology detection, and wherein all of the patterns areprojected during the time between successive illumination cycles. 43.The method according to claim 33 wherein the optical topology detectionsystem and the illumination system emit light in the visible spectrum,and wherein the illumination system and the optical topology detectionsystem are controlled such that the illumination light and the opticaltopology detection light are interleaved at a sufficiently highfrequency that the illumination light is perceived as being continuousin time by an observer.
 44. The method according to claim 43 whereinsaid sufficiently high frequency is greater than approximately 60 Hz.45. The method according to claim 43 wherein the duration of the opticaltopology detection light is controlled relative to the duration of theillumination light in order to reduce visual disruptions perceived bythe observer.
 46. The method according to claim 43 wherein the opticaltopology detection system is a structured light device, and wherein thesequence of light patterns is selected to reduce visual disruptionsperceived by the observer.
 47. The method according to claim 46 whereinthe intensity of projected light patterns is controlled relative to theintensity of the illumination light in order to reduce visualdisruptions perceived by the observer.
 48. The method according to claim33 wherein the optical topology detection system is a structured lightdevice, and wherein the optical topology detection light is projected asa series of Gray code images.
 49. The method according to claim 33wherein the optical topology detection system is a structured lightdevice, and wherein the optical topology detection light is projected asa series of phase images.
 50. The method according to claim 33 whereinthe optical topology detection system is a structured light device, andwherein the optical topology detection light is projected as a seriesimages comprising Gray code images and phase images.
 51. The methodaccording to claim 33 wherein the illumination system is an overheadillumination device.
 52. The method according to claim 33 wherein theillumination system is associated with a modality selected from thegroup consisting of laser surgery, photodynamic therapy, laser ablation,low level laser therapy, infrared thermal therapy.
 53. The methodaccording to claim 33 wherein the illumination system is associated witha diagnostic modality selected from the group consisting of fluorescenceand/or luminescence imaging, scattering-based imaging such as opticalcoherence tomography, diffuse optical spectroscopy, Raman, coherentanti-Stokes Raman spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering, laserscattering spectroscopy, diffuse optical tomography, and photo-acousticimaging.
 54. The method according to claim 33 wherein the illuminationsystem provides the illumination light over an illumination field, andwherein the optical topology detection system provides the opticaltopology detection light over an optical topology detection field,wherein the method further comprises: detecting a location of theillumination field; and controlling the optical topology detectionsystem, or a beam path thereof, to overlap the optical topologydetection field with the illumination field.
 55. The method according toclaim 33 wherein one or more of the control signals are provided forrepeatedly triggering interleaved operation of an additional opticaldevice with the optical topology detection system and the illuminationsystem, such that the optical topology detection system detects theoptical topology detection light when the illumination system is notemitting illumination light and when the additional optical device isnot emitting light; and controlling the operation of the additionaloptical device according to the one or more control signals; wherein atleast a portion of the spectral content of the additional optical deviceis within an optical detection bandwidth of the optical topologydetection system.
 56. The method according to claim 55 wherein theadditional optical device is a surgical navigation system.
 57. Themethod according to claim 33 further comprising: monitoring a periodicmotion of a patient being imaged by the optical topology detectionsystem and generating a signal associated with the periodic motion; andcontrolling the acquisition of the optical topology detection lightbased on the periodic signal, such that acquisition of optical topologydetection light is performed during a portion of a cycle of motion ofthe patient, while maintaining the operation of the illumination systemduring the cycle of motion.
 58. The method according to claim 57 furthercomprising: generating a trigger signal based on the periodic signal;and controlling the acquisition of the optical topology detection lightbased on the trigger signal.
 59. The method according to claim 58wherein the optical topology detection light comprises a sequence ofstructured light patterns, wherein the sequence of structured lightpatterns are acquired at a pre-selected delay relative to the triggersignal during each cycle of motion of the patient.
 60. The methodaccording to claim 59 wherein the pre-selected delay is selected suchthat the sequence of patterns is acquired when patient is approximatelyat rest.
 61. The method according to claim 58 wherein the opticaltopology detection light comprises a sequence of structured lightpatterns, and wherein sequence of structured light patterns is acquiredduring each cycle of motion after receiving the trigger signal when arate of change of the signal falls below a pre-selected threshold. 62.The method according to claim 57 wherein the optical topology detectionlight comprises a sequence of structured light patterns, and whereinsequence of structured light patterns is acquired during each cycle ofmotion when the signal lies within a pre-selected range.
 63. The methodaccording to claim 57 wherein the optical topology detection light isacquired during each cycle of motion when the signal lies within apre-selected range.